Stray Bus Day 19 - Queenstown

After a heavy night in various bars around Queenstown with everybody from the Stray Bus, what better thing to do than head out for a spot of wine tasting!? We booked ourselves onto the 'Central Otago Wine Trail' a half day tour around some of the regions vinyards. The Central Otago region is famed for its Pinot Noir in particular as well as some white varieties such as Pinot Gris, Rieseling and Chardonnay. This is one of the world's most southernly wine growing regions, yet it still prospers due to its dry climate throughout the year. The cold winters are combatted by installing frost repelling covers and heaters to the vines in colder months of the year. We visited 4 wineries in the Gibbston Valley (about 20 mins drive from Queenstown). We visited Gibbston Valley Wines, Peregrene Wines, The Home & Kitchen Winery and finally Amisfield Wines, probably the most famous of the four. We tried numeruos varieties of the famous Pinot Noir - some good, some not so good. As I (Andy) had never been wine tasting before it was interesting to observe the winemaking process- from growing and harvesting to fermenting and storage. We aso were able to sample some Champagne at Amisfield and learn about how it is made. Each winery was different and had unique facets which made thier wine taste slightly different (apparently). It was fascinating to learn about the different types of grape and how this region compares to the world famous Marlborough region further north, famous for much more fruity and instant flavours.